Man pleads not guilty to attempted murder

Mitchell Grant Grote, 27, appears in court

By NEIL HARTSTEIN NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER

A man accused of stabbing a possibly homeless man in the neck on Sunday pleaded not guilty Tuesday to felony charges of attempted murder and assault with personal use of a deadly weapon.

The defendant, Mitchell Grant Grote, 27, appeared in Superior Court Tuesday for his arraignment. The case was continued until Feb. 7 to set a date for his preliminary hearing.

Prosecutors charged in their complaint that Mr. Grote “did unlawfully and with malice aforethought attempt to murder a human being.” They identified the injured man only as W. Vankoppen.

They charged the defendant’s alleged offenses were serious and violent felonies, and that his actions were “willful, deliberate and premeditated.”

The charges carry with them special allegations of use of a deadly weapon, a knife, and causing great bodily injury.

Prosecutors also listed aggravating factors, including that Mr. Grote’s alleged actions disclosed a “high degree of cruelty, viciousness or callousness.”

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